Manchego Apple Kale Farro Salad
Beautiful apple kale farro salad with savory manchego cheese, a light maple cider dressing, and a sweet and salty pecan pumpkin seed crunch topping. This harvest apple farro salad is the perfect lunch or holiday side dish, and a wonderful way to use up fresh fall apples! Make it your way with a boost of protein, even more veggies, and other yummy mix-ins.
Servings 6 servings
Calories 428cal
Ingredients
- For the dressing
- ⅓ cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- 1 to 2 tablespoons pure maple syrup, to sweeten
- 1 teaspoon dijon mustard
- 1 garlic clove, finely minced or grated
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
- Farro
- 3 cups filtered water
- ¾ cup farro, rinsed and drained
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- For the salad
- 6 to 8 cups chopped Tuscan kale
- ½ small to medium red onion, thinly sliced
- 1 large (or 2 medium) honeycrisp apple, cored and diced
- ½ cup dried cranberries (or sub chopped pitted Medjool dates)
- 3 to 4 ounces aged Manchego (or Parmesan cheese), grated
- Pecan and pumpkin seed crunch
- ½ cup raw pecans, roughly chopped
- ⅓ cup raw pumpkin seeds
- ½ tablespoon pure maple syrup
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
Instructions
- Cook the farro: In a medium pot, combine the water, farro, and salt and place over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium and simmer uncovered and cook until tender, 25 minutes. Transfer to a large sieve, rinse with cool water for 1 minute, then drain and add to a large bowl.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the ingredients for the dressing: olive oil, apple cider vinegar, pure maple syrup, dijon mustard, garlic, salt and freshly ground black pepper. Taste and add a little more maple syrup if you like a sweeter dressing.
- In the same large bowl with the farro, add the shredded kale and red onions then pour dressing over. Use tongs or clean hands to mix everything together for 1 minute. (This helps to break down the kale and potent red onion and evenly distribute the flavor of the dressing.) Allow it to sit and marinate while you make the pecan pumpkin seed crunch.
- To make the pumpkin pecan crunch: Place a medium skillet over medium heat and add pecans and pumpkin seeds. Toast the nuts/seeds, stirring frequently until they turn slightly golden brown and fragrant, 3 to 5 minutes, then turn off heat and immediately add in maple syrup and a pinch of sea salt. Stir for 30 more seconds to coat the nuts and seeds, then transfer to a piece of parchment paper to cool for a few minutes. Some of the nuts will slightly stick together but this is what we want for the ‘nut crunch’ in the salad. Allow to cool for 5 to 10 minutes.
- In the bowl with the kale, add in the apple, cranberries and grated manchango cheese. Give it a gentle toss, then add extra salt and pepper, to taste. Sprinkle the nut mixture on top and toss again. If you are serving the salad later, I recommend leaving the nut mixture out until you are ready to serve so it stays nice and crunchy. Enjoy!
Notes
Feel free to add crispy bacon on top of this at the end for a little protein and salty flavor boost. I’ve also had this with sliced sautéed chicken sausage and it is FABULOUS!
A sharp white cheddar would also be great in this.
If you’d like more veggies, add in 3 to 4 cups of cubed roasted sweet potato or butternut squash.
This is also delicious topped with ½ heaping cup toasted breadcrumbs or some croutons for crunch. Crushed pita chips would be yummy in here too.
To make it dairy-free or vegan: leave out the manchego.
To make it nut free: use extra pumpkin seeds instead of pecans.
To make it gluten-free: omit the farro or swap it for quinoa or a gluten-free short pasta shape.
Nutrition
Serving: 1serving (based on 6) | Calories: 428cal | Carbohydrates: 39.2g | Protein: 10.3g | Fat: 27.7g | Saturated Fat: 6.3g | Fiber: 6.6g | Sugar: 17.8g